Nikon D70 - Extreme Budget CCD DSLR Goodness

[@sputumtube]

When it came out it was cutting edge for a starter camera. And, depending on who you are (student, hobbyist, traveller etc.) and what you're expecting, it's perfectly fine today even with the supplied kit lenses. If you break/lose it you're not going to be crying into your cornflakes. A great back-up to your $25,000 100mp Leica M18 and Summicron-tar-lux lens jewellery.

[@Mr50mmish]

Haha exactly!

[@petercheuk9019]

One party trick on the D70 is that the physical shutter actually fires at 1/200 second at its maximum. The CCD is fired more quickly at higher shutter speeds. If you use a non-Nikon flash (or tape over the extra contacts so that the camera does not know that there is a flash attached) you have flash sync up to, theoretically, 1/8000 second. I had owned a D70 with the kit 18-70mm lens (it's a great lens, by the way, used it on a D500 for many years after I stopped using the D70). I finally gave the D70 away two years ago as I was not using it at all.

[@Mr50mmish]

Haha I think someone else also brought it up. Just read it on a couple old forums and from Ken Rockwell. I am mistaken. Odd trick haha. I'll have to explore it.

[@radostinlazarov6330]

I just tested it with a canon flash (no communication no hss) and I get perfect exposure! Thank you for the tip!

[@DixonLu]

Just to prove the point that final display resolution matters more than the camera's, in 2022 I took a few shots of flowers with a Tamron 90mm macro (F017) on a D70s. When shown on an iPad to a few people, some pros, they couldn't tell (or cared) they came from a 6MP camera even at 2x zoom.

[@williamdishmon6140]

It's nice to have enough resolution to crop

[@davepastern]

I still love my macro images from my 4mp 1D...that was an amazing CCD sensor.

[@vinceriggio72]

Nikon F mount forever! The cameras and lenses are the best for anyone who wants to collect or get started in photography. My manual and auto focus F mount lens collection grows at twice the rate as any other systems. Legendary quality for peanuts these days. You have learned the ultimate secret in the photo world. This was great!

[@Mr50mmish]

Haha yeah the F mount stuff is an amazing value now adays. It's a bit crazy how much value has fallen for some things, I noticed while looking for the Tamron 35mm 1.8 VC the Nikon F mount variants would always go for less. Haha sadly I bought the EF variant to adapt to another camera.

[@gerryhardman9060]

I paid $1900 Canadian for that camera with an 18 to 70 mm zoom lens. That camera made me enjoy photography again because I got instant recall on everything I shot. So it helped me to learn photography much quicker than if I shot film. I shot a wedding with it and my F90x loaded with film, that was 400 ISO. When I compared the prints I couldn’t believe that the D 70 shots were grainless. The film prints were very grainy. The camera was great up to about 1000 ISO and then It got a bit of noise. I saw a picture at a Customers house 2‘ x 3‘ taken with that camera and it looked very sharp. I was really impressed. That was a great sensor in the camera. My son still uses it. That was a great deal. I know you’ll enjoy using a great camera. The 18 to 70 lens is also a great Kit lens that was sold with the camera. You can find them for $100 or less. It was much better than the Canon kit lens which was a piece of garbage by comparison. Regards Gerry

[@Mr50mmish]

That's awesome it continues to be used! Haha yeah the 18-70mm Nikon lens is a solid kit lens!

[@karmagroovy]

Thank you again for another of your usual informational and entertaining videos. Yes, my first DSL was a D70s. In case anyone out there has to make a decision between a D70 and a D70s, the D70s has a smidge larger LCD screen (2.0 vs 1.8 inch) and the D70s has a brighter pentaprism viewfinder vs the D70 pentamirror. Although the D70(s) is an F mount camera , it will not meter non-APS-C lenses. If you have a lot of older AI-s, AI, pre-AI glass, you will find this challenging as I did. One odd fact about the D70(s) is that the sensor filter is pretty weak and allows a lot of IR light in. With the kit 18-55mm lens, I used an R72 IR filter to get some really nice IR shots.

[@Mr50mmish]

Yeah, the inability to meter older lenses can be challenging! I didn't realize it had a weak IR filter. That's awesome, I'm going to definitely give it a try!

[@ASTActionCam]

I got a D70, including a 50mm 1.8 for 60 bucks earlier this year. And it really is an amazing camera. The latest firmware makes it seem a lot more modern than it is. Things like auto-ISO are remarkable on a camera this old. I even find high ISO performance to be rather good, and I will shoot it at 1600 without too much worry. Auto-focus is good too. I think this is a great buy for anyone looking for a more retro image look.

[@Mr50mmish]

Great to hear you are enjoying yours! That is a steal of a price!

[@esppics21]

One was gifted to me and it's a great camera. Like all older cameras. This camera also love plenty of light. Shot it outdoors in bright sunlight and the pictures are just money.

[@Mr50mmish]

Excellent! Glad to see there are others using it!

[@gholen]

I have one and I love using it!

[@Mr50mmish]

Whoo, great to hear the D70 is still getting some attention!

[@gholen]

@@Mr50mmish I got it for around 30 usd, and with a battery as well, and it shares battery and cards with my Nikon D700, so I see it as a total win. And with the Sigma 50/1.4 (pre art), it a absolute joy.

[@Mr50mmish]

@@gholen Nice, great deal! Got a favorite lens you put on it?

[@gholen]

@@Mr50mmish The old 50/1.8 screw focus is a given because it just works and it gives you a lightweight system to throw in the bag.

[@mikestarkwind]

My first digital SLR! Was a great camera for its time! Liked it better than the D100. D200 was another great camera!

[@Mr50mmish]

Awesome! Really? What made you like it more than the D100 or D200, I'm a fan of the ergonomics of the D200 over the D70 but I do admit the weight differnce is pretty substantial!

[@mikestarkwind]

@@Mr50mmish I liked the D70 over the D100, not the D200! I have great images from the D100 but I wouldn't have changed to it, if my D70 wasn't stolen. When the D200 became available, I upgraded. I loved the D200 and still have it and use it occasionally for documenting my work.

[@Mr50mmish]

@@mikestarkwind ah haha, the D200 is perfection! Good to hear it's still being loved as well!

[@Anton...M]

У меня есть d70s, и это одна из моих любимых камер. Для съемки в солнечную погоду, в ярких наполненных цветом местах, сложно найти что то лучшее. Картинки которые она выдает, даже не хочется обрабатывать. Поэтому обычно снимаю в jpeg и лишь немного корректирую потом. Очень приятная камера и в управлении. Отлично лежит в руке и ей приятно снимать, в отличие от аналогов-современников.

[@Mr50mmish]

Yeah the punchy colors it can make in good light is incredible! And your right the ergonomics of cameras in the past really felt like they were designed to be used by actual hands haha!

[@AlSolarsky]

Hey. I like your reviews and style. I have and use the D70(s) with success. Mostly paired with D-Type lenses. Best regards!

[@Mr50mmish]

Hey, thanks! Great to hear! Yeah the D70 series does pair up well with the D-Series lenses, gotta love the built in motor! Got a favorite one you usually liked using?

[@RascalKyng]

Man, the strobe sync speed is incredible. With that in mind, one could really make this into a uni-tasker workhorse around that capability. Park a strobe and favorite lens on it, and have it in your tool belt. ... I find shooting @ 400 ISO at default, for these old CCDs, allows one to recalim those missing highlights. Not sure what 400 ISO unlocks in these old sensors, but try it and you gain a lot more highlights straight-out-of-camera. (Got that tip from Allie @ one month two cameras channel).

[@Mr50mmish]

Yup, awesome sync speed! I'll have to try the Iso 400 tip and see how it goes!

[@michaelreaves6212]

My first DSLR, paid over $1k for the kit 🙂. Still own it, as it accompanied me to my favorite 2 trips ever, it will always be one of my favorite cameras as a result!

[@Mr50mmish]

Nice! Glad to hear you still got it! How long have you had it for?

[@cx4130]

The D70 was my second DSLR ever back in 2004/2005. Somewhere along the line I gave it away to a friend as I got out of photography. Since getting back to picture taking this year, I have picked up another D70. I love the 500th sync speed for my strobe work. It's a fun camera for sure. 😁

[@Mr50mmish]

Whooo, that is great that you picked one back up! Yeah the 1/500th sync is pretty neat!

[@minority-jpeg]

I love your reviews so muchh❤️🙏

[@kytoober5137]

While the market was young, always felt like this camera was in a different class than the rebels. It was the first true prosumer body. Nikon apparently thought so too as they introduced the d50 and later the d40 too more closely compete with the rebels. One of my first photography jobs had us only using d70s along with those infamous Norman 200 b's

[@Mr50mmish]

That's true, with the eventual addition of the d40/50 line those felt more like competition for the rebel but even those feel quite a bit nicer than the rebels of the same generation. Haha hate to say it as I also love me some Canon, but the early rebels really did feel cheap in hand.

[@Ivandotjpeg]

I have several 4x6' enlargements of macro shots taken with a D70s. Shooting back in the day in a studio had our D1X go out and we got a D70s while the D1x was being fixed. It really rocked. I'm really fond of the early CCD nikons, even the D1.

[@Mr50mmish]

That's good to hear. Haha maybe I'll have to shoot both side by side and see which I like better!

[@kingghidorah8106]

Don't listen to the media, CMOS sensors still are unable to deliver the quality of colors, dynamic range and INTERPOLATION of CCD sensors. Having gone from an A200, A77II and A7IV I'm puzzled by how stale CMOS images are still coming out. CCD can take better Raws and the jpegs on my A200 look better than any Fuji cmos aps-c camera has ever did. Plus, CCD electronic shutter is global by default. If the manufacturers are eager to charge you over 6K for global shutter on a CMOS sensor, then they can make a CCD alternative for considerably cheaper. Also CCD always had less noise than cmos.

[@AprilReid-z6j]

Which lenses do you like to use on these DX format Nikons?

[@Mr50mmish]

I tend to to just put on FX format lenses. I don't have much by way of DX lens. So most prominently 85mm F1.8, 50mm f1.8 and 60mm macro are what's normally on em!

[@karmagroovy]

I used to own the Nikon AF-S DX 35mm 1.8G. The lens gives you that 50mm equivalent perspective and it's uber sharp!

[@Mr50mmish]

@@karmagroovy nice! I've always heard good things about that lens. I'll have to keep an eye out for it!

[@motters2001]

Have been using a D70 for a long time and two things which stand out are the light weight compared to other Nikon DSLRs and also the long battery life. One down side is that because this was a budget camera it has no Picture Controls (which I am addicted to), so no native black and white.

[@Mr50mmish]

Yeah the battery life is pretty great for these older DSLRs. I haven't really considered the weight of it that much but it is lighter than the more prosumer ones. Ah when did they add in the picture controls? I feel like that might have been on the D80?

[@timothy7112]

I just got the d70s the d200 and the d600. Why???? GAS

[@timothy7112]

Also find that trying to do flash sync above 1/500 will reveal the sensor pattern throughout the whole image rendering it useless

[@Mr50mmish]

Haha it's a great affliction to have.

[@MandrakeCigars]

I threw one of these away like 6-7 years ago. I believe mine was an s version. Who knew there would be a ccd sensor craze? I thought the IQ was real crap in comparison to newer bodies.

[@Mr50mmish]

Haha I'd believe that, I do remember maybe 5-6 years ago you could go to a thrift store and be a wash with older DSLRs. Yeah it isn't going to be shooting by modern mirrorless cameras but for small prints or social media viewing it's perfectly doable.

[@Jack_Schularick]

@@Mr50mmish And my recommendation would be: If you only have fifteen bucks to buy a new camera, you better work hard on getting a better job first, and only THEN think about a hobby. Life is too short to shoot with old entry level dslrs anyways, ccd or otherwise. Other than that - love your content, Mr

[@vincentmulder70]

​@Jack_Schularick Why, I used to have fun with that camera (D70s) years ago and it made me awesome photo's. There is no reason to work more and spent less time on other things to enjoy. 😊

[@cwmoss4124]

I bought one when they first came out for1600 usd

[@Mr50mmish]

That's awesome! What was your favorite lens to use with it?

[@erich623]

Is $15 dollars considered buying something?

[@Mr50mmish]

Haha nah for 15 bucks I'd rather have this than most things.

[@ericfernando4296]

the flash sync goes above 1/500 actually if you use "dumb" pins

[@Mr50mmish]

What do you mean. Like HSS? It'll go above 1/500, but as you increase the speed the amount of light proportionately drops as a result. That's the limit for the focal plane shutter and sensor. I'm not a flash expert so if someone wants to chime in.

[@ericfernando4296]

@@Mr50mmish i have a d40 and it gets to sync even at 1/4000 with single pin godox flash without HSS

[@ericfernando4296]

d40 uses the same CCD sensor as d70

[@MattMurddock]

Doesn't your neck ache doing a whole video like that? TURN YOUR BODY.

[@Mr50mmish]

Haha I would but the area where I record doesn't have a ton of knee space while sitting and I don't wanna push the focus too far back so turned body is the way for now haha.